Thursday Europa League Roundup: Son Shines for Spurs, Bordeaux Hold Liverpool

All 48 teams were in action as the Europa League group stage began Thursday night across the continent. 

Son Heung-Min scored twice in the first half as Tottenham Hotspur erased an early deficit on the way to a 3-1 victory over Azerbaijani champions Qarabag on Thursday night in UEFA Europa League Group J.

Richard Almeida slammed home a seventh-minute penalty to give Qarabag a surprising lead, but Son pulled Spurs level in the 28th minute and then put the hosts ahead just two minutes later. Dele Alli set up the second with an eye-catching assist and impressed throughout for Tottenham.

Erik Lamela chipped in the third for Tottenham in the closing minutes following good defensive work by substitute Harry Kane.

Group	Home Team	Score	Away Team
Group A	Fenerbahce	1-3	Molde
Group A	Ajax	2-2	Celtic
Group B	Bordeaux	1-1	Liverpool
Group B	Sion	2-1	Rubin Kazan
Group C	Qabala	0-0	PAOK
Group C	Borussia Dortmund	2-1	Krasnodar
Group D	Midtjylland	1-0	Legia Warsaw
Group D	Napoli	5-0	Club Brugge
Group E	Rapid Wien	2-1	Villarreal
Group E	Viktoria Plzen	2-0	Dinamo Minsk
Group F	Slovan Liberec	0-1	Braga
Group F	Groningen	0-3	Marseille
Group G	Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk	1-1	Lazio
Group G	St-Etienne	2-2	Rosenborg
Group H	Sporting Lisbon	1-3	Lokomotiv Moscow
Group H	Skenderbeu	0-1	Besiktas
Group I	Fiorentina	1-2	Basel
Group I	Lech Poznan	0-0	Belenenses
Group J	Anderlecht	1-1	Monaco
Group J	Tottenham Hotspur	3-1	Qarabag
Group K	APOEL	0-3	Schalke
Group K	Asteras	1-1	Sparta Prague
Group L	Partizan	3-2	AZ Alkmaar
Group L	Athletic Bilbao	3-1	Augsburg

Alli was just one of the many young players in the starting XI for Tottenham. Manager Mauricio Pochettino made several changes to his lineup after last weekend's win at Sunderland, giving debuts to Kieran Trippier and Kevin Wimmer.

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"[Qarabag] made us work for the win—they're not a bad side," Alli told BT Sport (h/t BBC Sport). "They did well. I'm happy for Son that he got two goals and that I played a part. It's always good to help the team."

The win took Spurs to the top of Group J, as Anderlecht and Monaco drew, 1-1, in the group's other match. Guillaume Gillet set Anderlecht on course with an 11th-minute volley, but Lacina Traore headed in the equalizer for the Ligue 1 side five minutes from time.

Up next, Tottenham travel to Monaco on Oct. 1, while Qarabag host Anderlecht.

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Liverpool held in France

Adam Lallana scored a fine solo goal, but Liverpool had to settle for a 1-1 draw at French side Bordeaux in Group B.

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Manager Brendan Rodgers selected an inexperienced side, perhaps with an eye on ending his side's two-match losing run in the Premier League. The Reds then lost their primary veteran presence when center-back Kolo Toure left the match in the first half with an injury.

Despite all the inexperience, it appeared Liverpool might take home all three points when Lallana nutmegged a defender and slotted past the goalkeeper for a 1-0 lead in the 65th minute. But Jussie bagged the equalizer for Bordeaux eight minutes from time to secure a point.

Liverpool will hope to return to winning ways in their next group match against Sion at Anfield on Oct. 1. The Swiss side currently sit atop Group B after beating Rubin, 2-1, on Thursday.

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Covering the continent

In Group A, Celtic twice took the lead before settling for a 2-2 draw with Dutch giants Ajax. The Scottish champions played the final 16 minutes with 10 men after defender Emilio Izaguirre saw red for his second bookable offense.

Nir Bitton put Celtic ahead with a rifled shot in the eighth minute, but Ajax hit back through Viktor Fischer midway through the first half. Mikael Lustig restored the lead shortly before half-time with a header from a corner, but the hosts drew level again through Lasse Schone six minutes from time.

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In Group C, Borussia Dortmund had to come from behind to win, 2-1, at home to Krasnodar. Adnan Januzaj, on loan from Manchester United, was a bright spot for the Bundesliga side, but Krasnodar took an early lead through Pavel Mamaev.

Matthias Ginter headed Dortmund level late in the first half, and debutant Park Joo-Ho nodded in the winner in second-half stoppage time.

Napoli had little trouble against Club Brugge, winning, 5-0, at home as Jose Callejon and Dries Mertens struck twice each. Marek Hamsik also scored for the Serie A side, who top Group D on goal differential.

In Spain, Aritz Aduriz led a second-half comeback as Athletic Bilbao overcame Augsburg, 3-1. The Bundesliga outfit took the lead through Halil Altintop's 15th-minute effort, but Aduriz turned the game around with goals in the 55th and 66th minutes. Markel Susaeta added the third for Athletic.

It was a fourth loss in five games for Augsburg.